


Pieces Of You

by miss_grey



Series: What We Do In The Dark [10]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Angst, Blood Drinking, F/M, M/M, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Supernatural AU - Freeform, Unresolved Sexual Tension, guys i hurt my own feelings, hunter carwood lipton, hunter dick winters, vampire nix
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-29 17:12:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19024336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miss_grey/pseuds/miss_grey
Summary: Nix and Dick both struggle with their feelings for one another.





	Pieces Of You

**Author's Note:**

> It wasn't supposed to get angsty this fast, but these two just can't seem to help themselves. *sigh* Btw, I have a short playlist I've been listening to while writing this series. Would anyone be interested in me sharing?

 

 

Nix breathed in the cool, fresh, night air and shoved his hands in his pockets.  The hunters had turned in about an hour before, and Nix had headed outside to keep an eye on things.  He’d needed a break—Dick’s house was comfortable, but Nix had been cooped up for too long, and the whole place reeked like Dick’s blood, and Nix couldn’t handle that at the moment.  Dick had distracted him enough earlier so that he could get himself under control, but he knew it’d be hard to maintain sitting awake all by himself, when he knew that Dick was just in the next room, warm and alive and sprawled in his bed….

Nix huffed.  Best to keep moving.  He lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply.  It was dark tonight—almost no moon.  Still, Nix could see well enough.  And so far, nothing.  He strolled leisurely, the grass crunching softly under his boots as he made a second round of the property.  Dick was pretty sure the ward had worked, but Nix figured there was no harm in making sure. 

Nix shook his head.  This was a trip, really.  Almost impossible to believe.  He still couldn’t quite wrap his head around the fact that Dick had actually invited him here, let alone that he’d altered his home’s wards to allow Nix to stay. 

Nix had guessed from day one that Dick Winters was one in a million—he was a _genuinely_ good man, and Nix had known enough people in his life to know how rare that was.  And not only had he spared Nix’s pathetic life, but he’d given him a chance.  A chance to do what, Nix wasn’t sure yet.  But a chance, nevertheless. 

Nix had been willing to beg if it got him next to Dick again, and he almost had, but in the end he hadn’t needed to.  Dick had been willing to trust him, strangely, even though it apparently went against every hunter instinct the man had.  Well, Nix wasn’t gonna question it too closely, and he definitely wasn’t going to fuck it up. 

So, he was outside, getting some much needed fresh air.  Because he simply could not stay inside.

He made a third circuit of the perimeter and then was making a fourth, when he paused, head cocked, as he caught the edge of a sound.  It was almost like…someone was banging.  Slamming their fists frantically against a glass wall.  Then it shifted, got louder, and Nix realized that it was coming from the other side of the property.  He tossed his cigarette and jogged toward the noise, but slid to a halt when he caught sight of a shadow—tall and dense, seemingly…punching at the air in front of it.  The banging sound echoed across the property.  The shadow slammed its fists at the air again and again, then it snarled, and the sound sent a shiver up Nix’s spine.  Then, the thing seemed to catch sight of Nix, and it growled, its hits becoming more wild and violent.  “Fuck,” Nix hissed, and he took a step backward.

Just then, he heard two other sets of footsteps behind him, and suddenly Dick and Lipton were there.  Dick’s hand curled around Nix’s shoulder and pulled him back another step.

“What _is_ that?”  Lipton murmured, and then suddenly the shadow’s head jerked up and it seemed to focus on them, though they couldn’t see its eyes in the darkness. 

“Demon,” Dick muttered, his hand tightening on Nix’s shoulder.

They stood there, a strange tableau, staring at each other across the expanse of property and the invisible ward, and then suddenly the thing was gone, melting back into the shadows.  A moment later, Nix felt Dick take a deep breath and his hand relaxed, sliding off of Nix’s shoulder.  Nix missed the weight and warmth of it already.

“Well,” Nix muttered, “at least you know the wards work.”

 

 

 

 

They retreated back into the house and settled in the kitchen.  The hunters made coffee and Nix grabbed another bottle of blood.  He needed it, especially because Dick’s knee kept brushing his under the table.  “It looked like it was trying to get to you,” Dick murmured from across the little table.

Nix shrugged.  “It probably was.  You said it’s killed three vampires here already, right?”

“Yeah.”  Dick frowned and his hands tightened around his coffee.

“We still don’t know why, though,” Lipton said.  “Are they enemies?  Is it just trying to protect its contract?  Does it just… _like_ killing?”

“And your friend Harry couldn’t tell you anything else?”

“No.”

“Well…hell.”  Nix muttered.  He took another deep pull from the bottle.  “You guys can’t stay trapped here forever.  What are you gonna do?”

“Go about our lives,” Lipton said.  “We hunt things like that every day.”

“Well,” Dick said, “not exactly like that.”

“You know what I mean.  I’m done hiding.”

“So that’s it?  You just go out and take your chances?”  Nix glanced at Lipton before turning his stare on Dick.

“Yes.  But we stay vigilant.  Practice the exorcism.  Make a habit of carrying crucifixes and holy water.”

Nix couldn’t help the smirk that curved his lips.  “Sounds sexy.”

Dick rolled his eyes. “Shut up, Lew.”

Nix’s undead, vampire heart leapt, despite himself.

 

 

 

 

Just before dawn, the three of them walked the perimeter again and found another dead vampire lying at the exact edge of the ward boundary.  Its body was broken and bruised, discolored…almost like something had thrown it against a wall over and over.  And it slumped oddly against the boundary, almost as if something invisible propped it up slightly. 

Nix felt a shudder go through his body and his stomach turned, his latest bottle of blood curdling in his gut.  But then suddenly Dick was next to him, and their shoulders brushed, and the roaring in Nix’s ears settled.

Lipton’s brows furrowed and he frowned.  “I wonder if this happened before or after we saw the demon?”

Nix thought about it, and decided he didn’t like either answer.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Nix retreated to the office reluctantly.  He was loathe to leave Dick, especially since the man had been sticking to him closely all night.  He wasn’t sure why, but he wasn’t stupid enough to ask.  He’d just enjoy it while it lasted, though he supposed sleep was the best thing for him right now. He’d been under a strain since the previous afternoon, when he’d woken with his heart in his throat, adrenaline pumping through his body, and his blood demanding that he _find_ and _drink_ and _feed._ It had taken everything he had to keep himself from simply reaching out for Dick and pulling him in, latching his lips against Dick’s neck, and drinking himself into blessed oblivion.  Part of him still really wanted that.  The other part of him…the part that was still a man, still Lewis Nixon, resisted, violently.  And the struggle fucking hurt.

So now he laid himself out on the army cot in the dim office and folded his arms behind his head.  In the other room, he could hear Dick and Lipton talking in low voices.  Nix didn’t make any effort to decipher their words.  Instead, he closed his eyes.  And with images of soft copper hair, honest blue eyes, strong arms and shoulders, beautiful, capable hands, and a serious mouth playing behind his eyes, Nix slipped off to sleep.

 

 

* * *

 

 

By the time Nix woke, he’d come to a decision.  He emerged from the office and headed immediately into kitchen to grab a bottle of blood.  He popped the cap, took a long gulp, then headed outside to find Dick. 

“Hey, Red,” Nix said, leaning against the porch railing next to Dick.  “I miss anything?”

“No.  Lip decided to head back into town, though.  He doesn’t like being cooped up like this.”

“Can’t blame him.  What about you?”

Dick’s mouth turned down into a slight frown.  “Me either.  But it didn’t seem right.  Leaving….”

Nix swallowed thickly.  “Because of me?”

Dick sighed, but didn’t answer.

Nix took another drink.  “The wards are working.  And as it turns out, you didn’t need my help much anyway.”  He gazed out at the darkening forest.  “I should head back to Jersey.  Besides, I can do more in the city.  I can tap into my network if you want, see if I can dig up any info on why the hell the Chicago coven is suddenly out for Lipton’s blood.  Because the demon isn’t your only problem.”

Dick was silent for a moment, contemplative, before he said “Sounds like a good plan.”

Nix swallowed around the lump in his throat.  “I’ll go pack my bag.”

“Nix,” Dick called, reaching out and grabbing his elbow softly.  Dick’s eyes flickered across his face for a moment before he dropped his hand.  “I’m still glad you came.  Thank you.”

Nix flashed him an easy smile.  “Yeah.  Anytime.”

 

 

 

 

Twenty minutes later, Nix’s things were in his backseat and he was driving away from the farmhouse while he pretended not to be watching Dick’s fading reflection in the rearview mirror.

 

 

 

 

Nix didn’t bother with going home—he drove straight into New York City.  As the miles had passed, Nix grew increasingly agitated, to the point where he felt like he might shake apart if he didn’t eat.  He needed blood and he needed it now, and if he had to gulp down another mouthful of pig’s blood, he was gonna vomit.

He loved New York.  Blood dens were easy to find, if you knew where to look.  And Nix knew where to look.  He parked a couple streets away from one of his favorite clubs and strode purposely down the sidewalk until he pushed through the doors and took a deep, calming breath.  The place was full of vampires and humans who were attracted to them—men and women cast coquettish looks from under their lashes and fondled their straws, hoping to catch the eye of one of the undead.

Nix had barely settled at the bar when a curvy redhead approached him, sliding her hand over his shoulder, where Dick had touched him just the night before.  “Hey there, tall, dark, and handsome.  You looking for some company?”

Nix chuckled, his dark eyes fixing on her.  She had blue eyes, too, just like Dick.  “Oh, definitely,” he murmured.  “Can I get you a drink?”

“Sure,” she purred, “then I can get you one.”  She brushed her hair blatantly from her neck.  “I’m Sophie.”

“Sophie.  Nice to meet you.  Call me Nix.”

After Nix ordered Sophie a drink, they retreated to the back half of the club and found themselves a dark, secluded booth, half-curtained off from the rest of the room.  Sophie and Nix settled close to each other on the leather seat.  “So, Sophie, what do you do?”

“We don’t need to talk, sweetheart,” she purred, running her hand over Nix’s thigh.

“Oh, thank God,” Nix muttered.  Then he was reaching for her, and she was moving, climbing into his lap, her warm breasts pressed to his chest.  Nix growled and brushed her hair away from her neck.  His eyes were hyper-focused and his brain was buzzing—he could see the pulse in her neck.  “Can I drink from you?”  He panted, his own pulse accelerating.  Adrenaline flooded his body and he was ready, _so ready,_ to sink into her and drown himself. 

“Please,” she whimpered.

That was all Nix needed.  He clutched her tightly to him and she ground her hips down against his.  He pressed his face against her neck, his nose brushing the steady throb of her vein.  He opened his mouth and huffed a hot breath against her skin, his fangs just barely brushing the warmth of her.“What are you waiting for, baby?”  She whispered.  She reached her hands up and tugged at his hair. “Come on, I want you.”

Nix closed his eyes and shuddered.  It was wrong.  It was all wrong.  He grit his teeth and forced himself to take a steady breath.  Her body was too curvy, too light—the wrong shape, entirely.  And her hair was just a shade off.  Her blue eyes were clear and cold, lacking the warmth he’d begun to grow accustomed to.  And she smelled _all wrong._ Nix’s hands fell limp away from her and he sat back, licking his lips and keeping his eyes closed.  He felt his pulse slow to a steadier _thump, thump, thump._ “Hey, what gives?”  The woman complained, leaning away from Nix’s body.  “What’s wrong with you?  I thought you wanted this.”

Nix took a deep breath and let it out slowly.  “Yeah, me too.  But I guess I’m just not in the mood anymore.”  He shifted her until she sat next to him again and he stood, shakily.  “Sorry, sweetheart.”

The woman frowned at him, eyes gone hard.  “Fuck you,” she growled, then crawled from the booth and stomped back toward the main bar.

Nix sighed and, head bowed, he made a hasty retreat. 

 

 

 

 

He stopped at three different 24/7 grocers and picked up a dozen bottles of pigs blood on the way back to Jersey.

When he pushed his front door open, he dropped his bags and dug the first bottle of blood out of its cooler.  He popped the top and downed it without taking a breath.  Then he opened another and did the same.

By the fourth bottle, Nix had collapsed on the floor next to his couch and tears made their way steadily down his cheeks.  _Fuck.  FUCK.  He was broken.  So broken._ He drank another.  Then another.

Nix drank until he passed out in the middle of his living room, the sun just beginning to peek over the horizon.  Empty, gore-streaked bottles littered the floor.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Two days after Nix left, Carwood walked into the living room and found Dick hunched forward on the couch, his laptop opened in his lap, eyes fixed, but soft, on the screen.  “What’s up?” Carwood called, trying not to startle his friend.

Dick shrugged and wordlessly waved his hand at the laptop screen.  Taking that as permission, Carwood circled behind him and bent to get a good look at what had caught Dick’s attention.  The whole screen was filled with an old black and white picture—three rows of young men, dressed in blazers and bowties, smiling and standing in front of a large stone building.  Carwood gave the image a cursory glance, not understanding why it had put Dick into this state, but then his eye caught on the date scrawled on the bottom: _May, 1916._ Then, understanding, he scanned each face until he found dark eyes and prominent, black eyebrows.  A charming smile.  “Whoa,” Carwood gasped, “Is that Nix?”

“Yeah,” Dick murmured, “The year he graduated from Yale.”  Carwood raised a brow in question.  Dick smiled sadly.  “He told me.  When he was here.”

“Well….” Carwood started, a bit unsettled by Dick’s sudden melancholy.  It was very unlike his friend.  “At least you know he was telling the truth about that.”

Dick sighed and glanced up at his friend, blue eyes a bit lost and a bit sad.  “Lip, I think he’s been telling the truth about everything.”

And suddenly Carwood understood.  He laid his hand softly on Dick’s shoulder.  “Yeah,” he said, “I think so, too.”

 

* * *

 

 

 

That night, Nix called.  “Hey Red, how you holding up?”

Dick smiled, even though Nix couldn’t see it, and rolled his eyes.  “I’m fine.  How are things back in Jersey?”

“Oh, you know,” Nix drawled, “just peachy.”

“Were you able to find anything?”

“Yeah, actually.  There’s quite a bit of buzz about your boy in the vampire community right now.”

Dick sat forward, suddenly serious.  “What are they saying?”

“Apparently the Chicago coven expected the contract against him to be closed _weeks_ ago, and since he’s still alive, they figured the demon changed his mind.  So they started to send their own people to do the job, except…well, you know what’s happened to them.  So now they’re getting nervous, because they don’t know what’s happening to those vampires.  But they think that you and Lipton are the ones getting rid of them.  And honestly, Dick, I don’t know whether they’re more scared or angry right now.  I’m worried they might up the ante and hire another demon.”

Yeah, Dick was worried, too.  They already had one demon to worry about.  The last thing they needed was another.

“Do you know why they’re doing this now?  Lip hasn’t tangled with them for almost two years.”

“I heard mention of a case in Louisville.  A few months ago.  An abandoned house was set on fire, along with the two vampires inside.  They think it was Lipton.”

“Oh, hell,” Dick muttered.  “It was.  We were ambushed and had to abandon our original plan.  Burning the house was a last ditch effort.  We almost didn’t make it out.”

Nix sighed.  “So you were there, too?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I guess you’re lucky, because they don’t seem to know that.  But it was apparently the last straw.  The female vampire you guys killed was Chicago high society.”

Dick closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the wall.  “So they put a hit out on him.”

“Yeah, and a demon picked up the contract, but took too long.”  Nix let out a deep breath.  “Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.”

“No,” Dick mumbled, “it’s better this way.  At least now we know why.  Thanks, Nix.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

They were quiet for a moment, then, simply listening to the other breathe, then Dick said “Hey Nix, I have a sort of strange question.”

Nix chuckled.  “Alright.  Shoot.”

“I was thinking the other day…about something you said while you were here.”

“Okay….  What?”

“You can tell me it’s not my business.”

“Dick, just tell me.”

“I was just curious… did you have your picture taken in the army?”

The line was silent for a moment, before Nix replied “Yes?”  Cautiously, like he thought it was a trap.

“Do you think you might still have it?  I’m just curious, like I said.  I’d like to see it, if you have it.”

Nix’s voice went strangely soft.  “Yeah, I think it might be around the house here somewhere.  I’ll see if I can find it.”  They lapsed into silence again for a moment.  Then, “Was there anything else you were curious about?”

“Are you feeling better?”

That question seemed to take Nix off-guard, because it took him a few seconds before he said “Yes.  All better.”

“Good.”  Then, Dick yawned.  “Well, it’s getting late.  I better go.”

“Sure.  Sleep well, Dick.”

“Yeah.  Have a good night, Nix.  Bye.”

“Bye.”

 

* * *

 

 

 

At 4:23 in the morning, Dick’s phone buzzed with an incoming message.  Eyes still half-closed and heavy with sleep, Dick fumbled with it and punched in the code to unlock it.  He opened the message without paying attention to the sender.  Then, as he realized what he was seeing, he sat up and wiped the sleep from his eyes.

It was a sepia toned portrait.  Nix’s dark, laughing eyes were the first things to catch Dick’s attention.  A round, boyish face.  Slight smirk on his plush lips.  Dark, thick brows—one perched just a tad higher than the other.  Collar high on the neck.  Uniform starched and unwrinkled.  Flat, officer’s hat cocked at a slight angle.  Nix stared back at Dick from the image.  At the bottom, scrawled in block letters: _Capt. Lewis Nixon, 1918._

Dick stared at the picture for much longer than he should have, then he saved it to his phone, and closed his eyes again.  He was _so screwed._

**Author's Note:**

> By the way, if any of you are trying to picture the portrait, here's what I'm imagining, but in a WWI US Army uniform. 
> 
> https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzJkMWRiNmMtN2ZmNy00ZWFkLThkNzYtOGQ5ZGVhMDE1NDY1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTEwODg2MDY@._V1_.jpg
> 
> That's what poor Dick has to deal with.
> 
> Remember, comments make my day and inspire me to keep writing. Please let me know what you think! And feel free to come and say hi on tumblr. I'm @realhunterswearplaid. :)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Pieces of you](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19264369) by [Lysel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lysel/pseuds/Lysel)




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